Atrial fibrillation is the most common form of arrhythmia and one of the most frequent causes of ischemic stroke. Several new anticoagulants have recently been introduced as alternatives to vitamin-K antagonists for prophylaxis of ischemic stroke and tested in phase-3 studies for efficacy and safety. Identifying patients who will profit in particular from the new anticoagulant therapy is crucial to the clinical application of these drugs. Vernakalant and dronedarone are new antiarrhythmic drugs for rhythm control of atrial fibrillation. However, therapeutic efficacy of the new agents still has to be proven.